Ingredients

Makes 4 × 250g dough balls

  • 500g bread flour (or 00 flour)
  • 340g cold water (68% hydration)
  • 10g fine sea salt
  • 100g active sourdough starter (100% hydration, fed 4–8 hours prior)

Method

Day 1 — Mix and cold ferment

  1. Combine flour and cold water in a large bowl. Mix until no dry flour remains. Cover and rest 30 minutes (autolyse). This develops gluten without kneading.
  2. Add sourdough starter and salt. Incorporate by squeezing the dough through your fingers and folding until fully combined, about 3–4 minutes.
  3. Perform 3 sets of stretch-and-folds over the next 1.5 hours: every 30 minutes, wet your hand, grab one side of the dough, stretch it upward as far as it will go without tearing, and fold it over the center. Rotate the bowl 90° and repeat 4 times per set.
  4. After the final fold, cover the bowl tightly and refrigerate for 48–72 hours. Longer fermentation improves flavor and extensibility.

Baking day — Ball, proof, bake

  1. Remove dough from refrigerator 3 hours before baking. Sourdough dough is colder and stiffer than commercial yeast dough and needs more warm-up time.
  2. Divide into 4 equal pieces (~250g each). Shape each into a tight ball. Place on a lightly floured surface, cover with a damp cloth or plastic wrap. Rest at room temperature for 3 hours.
  3. Preheat oven with a pizza steel or stone on the top rack to maximum temperature (260–290°C / 500–550°F) for at least 1 hour.
  4. On a well-floured surface, gently press each dough ball from the center outward, leaving a 1-inch border. Stretch by draping over your knuckles to roughly 12 inches. Do not use a rolling pin.
  5. Transfer to a floured pizza peel. Add toppings and slide onto the hot steel.
  6. Bake 6–8 minutes until the crust blisters and chars in spots and the cheese is bubbling. Broil for the final 1–2 minutes if needed.

Notes

  • Starter activity: Use starter at peak — domed, active, and bubbly. Sluggish starter means the dough won’t rise properly in the cold.
  • Hydration: The 100g of starter (50g flour + 50g water) is factored into the total. If your starter is a different hydration, adjust water accordingly.
  • Flavor difference from commercial yeast: Sourdough pizza has a more complex, slightly tangy flavor and a crispier crust bottom. The 72-hour ferment is worth the wait.
  • Freezing: Freeze shaped balls after the bench rest. Thaw overnight in refrigerator, then proof 3 hours at room temperature before baking.